Page 108 of The Rose in the Shadows

She didn’t hesitate to throw her shadows at me. They exploded forward, but this time I rantowardsthem, waiting until the last second to tap into my magic and push myself off the ground until I was soaring over them entirely. Camilla grunted in frustration as I landed behind her and rammed my elbow into her kidney. Her knees buckled, and she fell, cursing the Gods as she did.

“Someone’s been practicing some new tricks.”

“You have no idea what I can do,” I replied.

“I knowexactlywhat you can do.”

Her shadows ripped across my chest, pulling at the open wounds. I kicked out at her, desperate to get them off of me, and she latched onto my ankle, twisting it until I felt the mind-altering pain of the bone snapping.

I fell heavily, screaming, and blind to anything around me. All too suddenly, she crawled over me, wrapping her fingers around my throat. Her shadows latched onto my wrists and ankles, pinning me to the ground beneath her.

“You must die!”She screamed.

Above, Clay cried out once more.

For a moment, I lost myself to the pain of it all - the head injury, the broken ankle, the cuts and slashes that covered me from head to toe. I let myself feel every one of my wounds.

Until a shadow beast bit into Clay’s tail above me, stealing my full attention. Clay howled in pain, the sound raw and animalistic. He jerked, spinning wildly as he tried to remove the monster, but it only used its momentum to slide its claws through Clay’s torso while remaining latched onto his tail. Clay yipped once more before his wings faltered.

The ground trembled as the two creatures crashed down into it, and my blood turned to ice.

Please don’t be dead.

I blasted Camilla off of me and crawled towards where Clay had landed. Blood coated every inch of his reptilian form, but I could still feelhim.He was okay; he was going to be-

The shadow beast stalked towards him and plunged a midnight-black horn into the soft belly where Clay’s scales were less formidable.

When he cried out, it was more of a whimper than a roar.

“Clayton, get up right now!” I demanded.

His head whipped towards me, and our eyes met. We were hundreds of feet away from each other but I still felt his concern for me as Camilla ripped me back by my hair. He snarled at her, clashing his teeth together as he ripped himself away from the beast and struggled towards me.

The beast followed him, smashing a thorny tail into his hide once.

Clay stumbled.

The beast hit him a second time.

Clay roared.

The beast hit him a third time.

Clay fell.

“Don’t you fucking die!” I screamed to him, desperately.

I threw my head back, connecting with Camilla’s nose and feeling it crack under the pressure. As I struggled to my feet, I sent my first prayer to Hyrax.

You may not have him! Do you hear me? You want me to restore your House - your name? He ismineand you will not take him from me.

Hyrax wasn’t here to help me, though. If I wanted to save Clay, I needed to do something.

Camilla’s eyes were so black, so inhuman. She was fueling an entire battle with magic stolen from the life force of human souls. And each person who fell fed her power even more. Shewas only growing stronger and crazier by the moment while Clay, Rankor and Kent - my family - were being killed.

I needed to stop this.Now.

An inhuman growl escaped from the depths of my chest as I tapped into the well of magic in my stomach and connected with her, allowing myself tofeelher. I felt for her heart, her lungs, even the movement of her blood. And just when I was about to squeeze her heart and end this, end her, I froze.

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